Marry in May and Rue The Day

My fiance comes from a huge Irish family, where as I am more of a mutt (German, English, etc...you name it - it is part of my family heritage). Being of Irish descent, my fiance has really tried to show me some of the great traditions and I definitely want to incorporate some of these into our wedding celebration. However, after doing a little research - I already found out that I am breaking one of the customs of an Irish wedding - getting married in May! I guess it is bad news - hence the Irish verse - Marry in May and Rue the Day! Oh well...I am not changing the date! But here are some interesting Irish customs.

- Lucky horseshoe: Irish brides used to carry a real horseshoe for good luck. (Turned up so the luck won't run out). You can get porcelain horseshoes which most Irish brides carry these days, or one made of fabric which is worn on the wrist.

- Magic Hanky: This charming custom involves having the bride carry a special hanky that with a few stitches can be turned into a christening bonnet for the first baby. With a couple of snips it can be turned back into a hanky that your child can carry on his/her wedding day.

- Make-up bells: The chime of bells is thought to keep evil spirits away, restore harmony if a couple is fighting, and also remind a couple of their wedding vows. Giving a bell as a gift has become an Irish tradition. You could also have your greeters hand out tiny bells to your guests to ring as you process. (You might want to let them know when they're supposed to be rung - perhaps mention it in your program along with an explanation of the custom). Guests could also ring their little bells at the reception in lieu of clinking glasses.

- Salt and oatmeal: In the old days, a bride and groom would take three mouthfuls of salt and oatmeal as a protection against the power of the evil eye. Also, when she's dancing, the bride must never take both feet off the floor because the fairies will get the upper hand. Fairies love beautiful things and one of their favorites is a bride. There's many an Irish legend about brides being spirited away by the "good" people! It's also very risky to wear green and it's very bad luck for a bride or the groom to sing at their own wedding.

- Strawing a wedding: It was said to be very lucky if the straw boys came and danced at your wedding. While there are several different versions of how they came into existence, the one I like best is this: young men who were being chased because they were rustling the landowner's sheep would sneak into a wedding reception and mingle with the guests. Eventually, it became a tradition for friends of the groom to disguise themselves with straw masks and suddenly show up.

- Jaunting Car: The men of the bridal party would hoist the groom in a chair and parade him around as a newly married man.

I found a ton more of traditions here at this site.